Doing the piano trio justice

Sunday

May 26, 2013 at 12:01 AMMay 26, 2013 at 1:00 AM

Editor's note: The musicians mentioned in this column have appeared separately as part of the "We Always Swing" Jazz Series; Jon Poses also works with Edward Simon as part of the ensemble Bobby Watson and Horizon.

The classic piano-acoustic bass-drums trio is still hard to beat. Throughout jazz history, the presence of so many tremendously engaging examples poses a challenging question: How does one deliver a "new" trio recording with a fresh enough sensibility to knock you out?

For starters, each member must be exceptional at their craft. Without the highest level of skilled participation, chances are the effort, while it might receive an "A" for taking on such a format, will fall short in the originality department. Similarly, the trio symbolizes one of jazz's most democratic occasions; it requires a balanced triumvirate, one where each member contributes equally, regardless of who serves as the bandleader. If a piano trio owns these qualities, it has at least a fighting chance to impress — either in a live or recorded setting.

Enter the Edward Simon Trio, which consists of three complete and exceptional musicians, each brings an embarrassment of riches to the table: compositional skills, improvisational capability, technical prowess and a passel full of fluidity. Joining Simon on the Venezuelan native's latest release, "Trio, Live In New York At The Jazz Standard" (Sunnyside), are bassist John Patitucci and drummer Brian Blade.

Live recordings can be less than satisfying — after all, they are live and therefore prone to imperfection, the occasional missed or botched notes. If there's a bad note here, I haven't heard it. Sonically, live recordings can also be a bit off. This is not the case here. I'm no audiophile, but "Live At The Jazz Standard" provides the listener with an exceptionally crisp, clean-sounding experience throughout the disc's five extended selections that run anywhere between 8½ and nearly 16 minutes in length.

During the past two decades, Simon has developed into one of jazz's most accomplished, imaginative and versatile pianists. He's comfortable in any number of settings and styles. Simultaneously, Simon's own contributions to present-day literature seem to grow in number with each passing year. Further, his musical scope, as reflected on this live recording, is vast; he runs the gamut from post-bop to Latin, the cerebral to the classically infused and beyond.

"Live at The Jazz Standard" might only house five selections, but the three Simon composed cover a lot of territory, improvisationally and structurally. There is a mess of time signatures, which all seem to fit together beautifully as one selection rolls into the next, separated by — and understandably so — enthusiastic applause.

In Simon, Patitucci and Blade, we have musicians of equal standing who know each other well. The trio has released "Unicity" (2006) and "Poesia" (2009) for the CAM Jazz label. Patitucci and Blade are two sterling strongest players, certainly leaders in their own right. Still, their pairing — cemented even more the past few years as one half of the Wayne Shorter Quartet — results in a synchronicity from start to finish.

Patitucci's virtuosity on bass is way up there, as is his tonality; there are few who can touch his capability — his solos and his accompaniments continually amaze. Similarly, there are a ton of passages where Blade's tasteful drumming — filled with a subtle, wondrous dynamic from the softest soft to great density — can't help but draw you in.

The middle of the five cuts here is Simon's "Pathless Path." Nice title, right? It starts off with Patitucci's solo bass and ends with a mirrored effort that dwindles to one note. Throughout the 15-minute-plus piece, the threesome follows its respective improvisational instincts with each leading the others at different points.

A scintillating reading and interpretation of John Coltrane's great, modal "Giant Steps," previously recorded by the trio on "Poesia," follows immediately. While Simon, Patitucci and Blade pay obvious referential homage to 'Trane's spectacular now-standard selection, the three manage to set down their own killer groove — with each member soloing extensively while the other two "chip in" intermittently, not so much to lend a helping hand but to complement their comrades in musical arms.

The Edward Simon Trio has been working on and off as a unit for nearly a decade, but with each musician's enormously busy schedule, dates such as this are something of a rarity. That's why "Live At The Jazz Standard," released last month but recorded some 2½ years ago, should be recognized for what it is: a highly successful document worth having — and listening to. Simon, Patitucci and Blade represent the modern piano trio at its best.

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